In order to figure out what belief I wanted to share with the world, I started by browsing the archived audio essays on NPR’s website. After a lot of introspection and a number of drafts, I finally settled on an idea:

I believe the best memories are made by finding the humor in unplanned situations.

I often find myself encouraging others to stay positive when things don’t go the way they had planned. I’ve also found that my favorite stories to share and reminisce about are those that came about when the unexpected happened. Instead of complaining or pitying myself, saying things like “just my luck,” I like to laugh at the situation and make the most out of it.

There are two stories that I would like to use in my essay if I have time. During Freshman year on the way home from a meet, the swim team bus broke down in the middle of nowhere. We were all hungry and tired, and we had hours of homework ahead of us, but we were all laughing and making jokes about who we would sacrifice Donner-Party-style first. Despite the fact that our bus ride was hours longer than expected, and I was up until sunrise doing my homework, that is by far my favorite swim memory.

The other story is about my local arboretum. I was on a leadership team with my friends at the arboretum, and every year we ran an event called the Haunted Woods. After the event, we were driving around, cleaning the trails in the arboretum’s new solar-powered golf cart. Evidently it was not bright enough earlier that day, because when my friends Patrick, Abby, and I piled into the cart at the bottom of a massive hill, we discovered it had died. After repeatedly hitting the gas petal and laughing until we cried, Patrick steered the cart while Abby and I pushed on the back—all the way to the trail’s opening. We were exhausted. Instead of feeling bad for ourselves, we turned the experience into one of our favorite memories.

I believe the themes I want to tackle in my essay—being open to a change in plans, staying positive, and laughter—can be applicable to everyone. I am yet to find someone that has never experienced a blip in their plans. Being positive and finding the humor  in unexpected situations can help you be happier and make more meaningful memories.